Baked Semolina Gnocchi and Pasta Night

Pasta Night: 60+ Recipes for Date Nights, Lazy Night and Party Nights, written by Deborah Kaloper, features a fun and delicious collection of pasta recipes perfect for any occasion. A few highlights include Capellini alla Checca, Linguine Vongole, Orecchiette with Broccoli Sauce, Gigli Primavera, and Spinach and Three-Cheese Manicotti. I will also be sharing her recipe for Baked Semolina Gnocchi following the review.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from Smith Street Books in exchange for my honest review. All comments and opinions are my own. This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase something through the link, I may receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.

Deborah Kaloper

Deborah Kaloper is a food stylist, prop stylist, and recipe developer. She is a former breakfast and pastry chef and now works with top photographers, chefs, food writers, brands, and has been a part of over 60 cookbook projects.

She grew up in California and is currently based in Melbourne, Australia. Deborah is also the author of Good Mornings.

Pasta Night

Deborah begins Pasta Night with a short introduction. Before getting to the basics, she describes a few pasta essentials (handmade pasta dough, machine-made pasta dough, and cooking pasta) and key ingredients.

Chapters are divided according to type of pasta: Basics, Long Pasta, Flat and Ribbon Pasta, Short-Cut Pasta, and Filled Pasta and Gnocchi.

The first chapter covers homemade dough and sauces. I especially love the color of the beetroot egg pasta.

The photography is provided by Emily Weaving with food styling by Deborah Kaloper. Every single recipe is paired with a full page photo of the finished dish.

Measurements are listed in Metric and US Customary. Titles are written in English or Italian.

Baked Semolina Gnocchi

The Baked Semolina Gnocchi (Gnocchi alla Romana) comes from the Filled Pasta & Gnocchi chapter. I haven’t had much experience making it at home, so I was particularly excited to see it in the book.

Compared to potato and ricotta gnocchi, Baked Semolina Gnocchi is a bit easier to make! There is also no special equipment required.

Simply cook the semolina and milk mixture on the stove until thickened and pulling away from the sides of the pan, spread into an even layer, allow to cool, and use a round cutter to form the individual discs.

Arrange the rounds in slightly overlapping layers in the prepared baking dish, then top with even more butter and a sprinkling of parmesan and black pepper before transferring to the oven.

The results are cheesy semolina-based rounds with a crisp golden crust and creamy, slightly chewy center.

A Few Baked Semolina Gnocchi Tips

Add the semolina to the hot milk while whisking in a slow but constant stream. This will help create a smooth mixture. Once all the semolina has been added, swap the whisk for a wooden spoon to work with the thick dough.

Stir the dough often, especially on the bottom and sides of the pan as it starts to thicken, to keep it from burning and sticking.

Allow the spread-out dough to cool completely before cutting out the rounds.

For the large baking dish, a 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 centimeter) would work well. I went with a 15 inch (38 centimeter) oval dish.

Bake the Gnocchi alla Romana until crisp and golden. For my oven, it was closer to 30 minutes.

Notable Ingredients

Semolina (durum wheat flour) is a flour with a high protein content perfect for a variety of pasta, pancakes, and bread.

It can be located in the specialty flour section of many larger grocery stores (I have found it at Eataly in Los Angeles and Wegmans in Northern Virginia), especially those featuring Italian ingredients or on Amazon: Bob’s Red Mill Semolina Pasta Flour. For this recipe, you will need fine semolina flour.

More Pasta

I also made Pici, Spaghetti Carbonara, Parsley and Walnut Pesto with Fusilli col Buco, and Spaghetti and Meatballs.

The Pici was such a fun pasta shape to form! A semolina-based dough is cut into 1/4 inch (5 millimeter) strips, then hand rolled. If desired, it can be used for the recipe, Pici with Duck Ragu.

Spaghetti Carbonara is a favorite of mine and this recipe definitely didn’t disappoint. Al dente spaghetti is quickly tossed in an egg yolk and parmesan sauce to coat along with crisp pieces of pancetta. Serve immediately with an additional egg yolk on top.

The Parsley and Walnut Pesto is a delicious pesto variation perfect for winter months when basil is not in season. Toasted walnuts are blended with parsley leaves, garlic, parmesan, lemon, and olive oil to create a bright and vibrant sauce. Fusilli col Buco was not available so I swapped for another shape.

The kids requested the Spaghetti and Meatballs and they were huge fans. After cooking the pasta until al dente, it is tossed in a homemade tomato sauce with pork and beef meatballs.

Pasta Night is a great pick for those who love pasta and are looking for a fun variety of recipes. Many of the dishes come together in less than 30 minutes, while others such as the filled and formed pastas take a bit longer. There is a nice assortment of meat-based, vegetable, and even vegan options.

Most of the ingredients are readily available in larger American grocery stores. A few items that may require further searching include squid ink, nutritional yeast flakes, pancetta, guanciale, dried porcini mushrooms, saffron, fregola, garlic chives, ricotta salata, and amaretti biscuits.

Baked Semolina Gnocchi Recipe

Excerpt from Pasta Night

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5 from 5 votes

Baked Semolina Gnocchi

A recipe for Baked Semolina Gnocchi (Gnocchi alla Romana)! Discs of semolina-based dough are arranged in a baking dish and baked until golden.

Course Main

Cuisine Italian

Keyword gnocchi, Italian, Italy, semolina

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes

Resting Time: 40 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 35 minutes

Servings 4 Servings

Ingredients

• 1 liter (4 cups) full-cream (whole) milk
• 80 grams (2 3/4 ounces) butter divided
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg plus extra to serve
• 225 grams (8 ounces) fine semolina flour
• 100 grams (1 cup) finely grated fresh parmesan divided
• 2 free-range egg yolks
• Freshly cracked black pepper

Instructions

• Place the milk, 50 grams (1 3/4 ounce) of the butter, the salt and nutmeg in a saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil.
• Working quickly, pour the semolina flour into the pan in a continuous stream, whisking constantly to avoid lumps forming.
• Reduce the heat to medium and continue whisking for 3-4 minutes.
• As the mixture thickens, replace the whisk with a wooden spoon and continue stirring until a dough forms.
• Remove from the heat, add 80 grams (2 3/4 ounces) of the parmesan and stir to incorporate.
• Next, add the egg yolks one at a time, beating thoroughly into the mixture before adding the next.
• Line a 33 centimeter x 23 centimeter (13 inch x 9 inch) baking dish with baking paper, then using a spatula, spoon and smoothly spread the semolina mixture into the dish to a depth of about 1.5 centimeters (1/2 inch).
• Set aside for 40-60 minutes to completely cool and set.
• Preheat the oven to 200˚C (400˚F).
• Using a 5 centimeter (2 inch) round pastry cutter, cut the semolina into 16 discs.
• Grease a large baking dish with 10 grams (1/4 ounce) of the remaining butter and lay the discs in slightly overlapping rows.
• Dot the gnocchi with the remaining butter, sprinkle over the remaining parmesan and season with black pepper and extra nutmeg.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden and crisp.
• Divide the gnocchi among warmed plates and serve immediately.